Published: October, 1963
Script: Stan Lee
Art: Steve Ditko
Letters: Sam Rosen
On the cover, Doctor Doom challenges Spider-Man with “If the Fantastic Four could not stop me, what chance have YOU?” And that’s a good point. Spider-Man alone obviously doesn’t possess the collected talents of “the world’s most fabulous super-team!” (And by the way, even though we’ve just met the X-Men and the newly-formed Avengers, the FF are still “the world’s MOST fabulous super-team!”) Looking at this cover, readers must be thinking, “Oh boy! How is Spidey ever gonna get out of this one?” It would appear our hero is (pardon me…) DOOMED from the start.
Of course, reason quickly sets in, and we know he’ll find some way to overcome the odds. If he doesn’t actually defeat Doom, he can at least cause the super-villain to beat a hasty retreat, exclaiming as he glances over his shoulder, “I shall NEVER suffer the humiliation of being captured by the likes of YOU!!” (FF#17).
So, even though we can pretty much guess how this turns out, now we want details!
HOT ***AND*** NOT
I began writing this entry in my “Hot & Not” format, but quickly realized that every “Hot” was tempered by a “Not,” and every “Not” had an element of “Hot” within it. There’s so much going on beneath the surface of this little story that distilling it all down to black and white simply didn’t work.
Doctor Doom contacts Spider-Man in hopes their partnership can lead to the destruction of the FF. Spidey refuses, but when Flash disguises himself in a Spider-Man outfit, Doom captures and threatens to kill him, unless the FF disband. Spider-Man comes to the rescue, as do the FF, and Doom escapes again.
Well, that was easy, wasn’t it? Not so fast, my friend! What about:
THE SOCIALIZATION OF THE NERD
I was pleased to see Peter out with the “gang” at the bowling alley. The boy needs some socialization! However, Flash Thompson takes advantage of this opportunity to ridicule Peter in front of his peers, making some crack about a knitting club and calling him a “pantywaist.” Seems Peter just can’t win!
Or can he?
BUDDING ROMANCE?
Can love be on the horizon for our poor, misunderstood hero? Seems there’s someone out there who does understand and appreciate Peter’s efforts as Spider-Man. When J. Jonah Jameson’s secretary Betty Brant mentions that people think Jameson may be jealous of Spider-Man, Peter takes notice. And later, Betty tells Peter she thinks HE’S “wonderful.”
This reads like a budding romance, but is it entirely appropriate? After all, Peter is a minor, still in high school, and Betty is obviously an “older woman.” She’s probably only a couple of years out of secretarial school, though it’s hard to determine her age, based on her hairstyle and outfit. Personally, she reminds me way too much of my third grade teacher, who was neither young nor pretty.
But whatever Betty’s age, we must ask the question: Is it proper for the secretary of the publisher of a major metropolitan newspaper to be batting her eyes at a high school stringer? Does she not value her job? Or is she only using her position in Jameson’s organization as a stepping stone to find a husband? And if so…why is she flirting with some nerdy high school kid?
SOME OF THE LANGUAGE IN HERE JUST SLAYS ME
Early on, Doom refers to the FF as “that accursed quartet.” How poetic! Later, he calls Spider-Man “My impetuous friend,” and “You brazen fool!” He also accuses Spider-Man of having “insipid antagonists.” Stan must have been writing this with The Collected Works of William Shakespeare on one side, and a thesaurus on the other.
Of course, not to be outdone, Spider-Man fights back by calling Doom “Tin-Head” and “Rustpot.” Well…he’s just a kid. He’s doing the best he can.
ED SULLIVAN
Cultural reference alert! Aunt May watches The Ed Sullivan Show, featuring a juggling act and “a chorus from some Midwestern college.” Remember Ed Sullivan? Sure, it was a “Really Big Shew!” with an occasional stroke of genius, like Elvis Presley, the Beatles, and even Topo Gigio! But if you ask me, far too much time was spent on jugglers and choruses.
NOBLE HERO?
I found it interesting that when Peter hears the Spider-Man-wannabe that Doom has captured is Flash Thompson, his gut reaction is, “What a break for me!” For a moment, he revels in the possibility of an existence where Flash is not constantly calling him a pantywaist. But it’s a lot more complicated than that. What he actually says is, “And Flash Thompson will never bother Peter Parker again!” At this point, he’s thinking of himself in the third person, as any good super-villain would do. But a moment later, the angel on his shoulder chimes in, and he decides, “The real Spider-Man will have to go into action.”
The split face is particularly effective, showing the Peter side of his personality with an almost diabolical expression, while the Spidey side radiates positive energy. Peter may want Flash dead, but SPIDER-MAN is the noble hero who’s not going to let that happen.
CHECK YOUR EGO AT THE DOOR
As noble as Spider-Man may be, you know he has a gigantic ego. On the roof of Doctor Doom’s lair, he reflects that ONLY HE is capable of slithering down the air vent. But wait just a minute there, Spidey! Mr. Fantastic could certainly do the same, and with greater dexterity! We don’t actually see Mr. Fantastic slithering down the vent. Maybe he does, maybe he doesn’t; I don’t know. However, I would like to have seen that. Or…maybe not. Read on.
ARTISTIC DEPICTION…?
We spend most of the story being teased about a potential appearance by the Fantastic Four. First we see the Baxter Building, then the Fantasti-Car, and finally Thing’s hand reaching out to grab Peter from just outside the panel. I was starting to think we were never actually going to see the Four (sort of like Tim’s neighbor Wilson, in Home Improvement), but then… we turn the page… and THERE they are…
And what a let-down. >sigh< Let’s just say, it’s obvious Steve Ditko is not the usual artist for the Fantastic Four.
UNMASKED…OR NOT?
It’s relatively easy for any artist to do a fair rendition of Doctor Doom, since he’s all cape and metal. The most human feature we ever see on Doom is a furtive glance of the eyes. We occasionally get some expression in his mouth as well, and Ditko does a good job here, as we see Doom trying to convince Spidey that they are birds of a feather.
When our hero disagrees, Doom turns to Plan B: kidnap Spider-Man. Since he actually kidnaps Flash Thompson, it doesn’t matter whether or not he unmasks the fellow. I guess Doom, with his infinite resources, is not interested in J. Jonah Jameson’s hefty $1,000 reward for the true identify of Spider-Man. He’ll be able to pay the rent without it.
Still, I find it curious that Doom himself is not curious about who’s been causing him all this grief. In his defense, we could say that Doom is a villain of singular purpose: as long as the Fantastic Four are knocked out of commission, he doesn’t care what else is going on in the world of superheroes and super-villains.
But…c’mon! He must be at least a little curious! I mean, if he’s such a brilliant scientific mind, why doesn’t he possess even the slightest bit of curiosity about Spider-Man’s identity? He should at least make sure Spider-Man isn’t actually the Mayor’s son, or one of President Kennedy’s numerous brothers! That kind of information would surely be worth something in the world of super villainy.
GENEROSITY… OR STRATEGY?
I can’t leave without taking at least one jab at J. Jonah Jameson. As I’ve mentioned, the publication mogul offers $1,000 for anyone who can disclose Spider-Man’s identity. Wooooo! Did you say ONE… THOUSAND… DOLLARS??? Okay, I know it’s only 1963, so money was worth a lot more than it is now, but even then, that’s a measly amount, coming from the publisher of Now magazine AND the Daily Bugle. What’s that all about? Is he really such a cheapskate? Or is there perhaps a method to his madness?
I propose that Jameson is keeping the reward low because he doesn’t actually want to learn who’s behind the mask. If the secret is revealed, it may reduce the “advantage to keep pounding away at that corny costumed clown!” How many newspapers can he sell, once the story has been told? How will he keep them coming back for more?
So what do you think? Is Jameson really that clever? Hmmm….Let me think about this…just one moment….nahhh. I take it back. He’s really just a cheapskate.
But there’s nothing cheap about our next tale, when metal melts and the preservation of secrecy is worth its weight in gold. It’s going to be a doozy! So join me next time, right here in the Marvelous Zone!
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I don’t want to reveal too much in advance, but Betty isn’t that much older than Peter and her reason for leaving school early will be revealed over the next six issues.
One of the things that distinguishes Stan Lee’s scripts from the few other writers Marvel had at the time (like his brother Larry Lieber) is that he worked in contemporary references when possible. He worked in radio and television briefly and was accustomed to keeping abreast of what audiences were used to seeing. It was also a short-hand way to introduce new readers to the personalities of the supporting cast without repeating similar-sounding exposition that would bore regular readers. For instance, Aunt May watches Ed Sullivan, one of the most popular, middle-brow cross-generational shows at the time (if not ever). It’s familiar and comfortable, but not hip (Elvis hadn’t appeared in years and had since then been in and out of the army; the Beatles would not appear until the following February), ergo, everyone loves Aunt May even though young readers aren’t expected to identify with her. Ben Grimm quotes William Bendix’ character Riley (“Wot a revoltin’ development!”), befitting a blue-collar, populist outlook. Jameson the blowhard would probably go for something a little stiffer (“Victory At Sea”), maybe even reactionary (Saturday Evening Post editorials?). It was a time saving measure, but also one of the few advantages that he had over the far more organized and machine-like DC editorial process in which stories began to be plotted as much as two years before they saw print, often being inked and put on file a good four months before being colored (the final stage, often done immediately before printing). Lee’s “Marvel Method” was a lot more loosey-goosey and seat-of-the-pants with the dialogue often being written AFTER the art, so that contemporary references won’t seem quite so out of date when they’re eventually read.
Thanks for the insight! I look forward to learning more about Betty, and seeing her relationship with Peter develop, as I’m guessing it will.
I love all the cultural references in Marvel Comics! Some of them I personally remember, but I’m sure a lot of them are going right over my head (being in kindegarden around the time these comics I’m reading now first started coming out). I don’t really know very much about DC comics at all, but the process you describe sounds antiquated and stilted. Personally, the “loosey-goosey” method works great for me!
As mentioned, Betty is not really supposed to be much older than Peter, although one has to question how Betty was hired as secretary to the publisher at such a young age.
The reason you probably saw so little of the FF is due to Steve Ditko, who has stated that he never liked the idea of guest stars. The Dr. Doom plot was likely Stan’s, but since Steve worked from a short synopsis he had the ability to develop the story as he saw fit. It was probably Steve’s idea to limit the FF’s appearance, although I like the idea that they only show up in a cameo.
Personally, I love the idea of “guest appearances.” As the saying goes: The more, the merrier! 🙂
Under the department of inflationary adjustment, $1,000 in 1963 comes out to just under $7,500 in 2014 bucks.
The average annual income in 1963 was $5,800. ($45,000 in 2014)
The average price for a new car in 1963 was $3,200. ($25,000 in 2014)
If I were Joe Average-Wage-Earner in 1963, I wouldn’t sneeze at $1,000.
Thanks for the perspective. Hey, I wouldn’t sneeze at $1,000 today! But whether it’s today or back in the early 60’s, Jameson could probably afford to light his cigars with $1.000 bills…but he’s just too darn cheap! At least that’s why I’m picking up about him from the few times I’ve met him so far.